Education: VAM Registration, Housing Now Open

Mar 13, 2019 Re-posted from the March 2019 issue of Vascular Specialist

Registration and housing have opened for the 2019 Vascular Annual Meeting. This year’s premier educational event for vascular professionals will be June 12 to 15 at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor, Md., outside of Washington, D.C.

Wednesday, June 12, will include postgraduate courses, abstract-based sessions with the Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Society and a host of international events. Scientific sessions are June 13 to 15 and the Exhibit Hall will be open June 13 to 14. See the “Schedule at a Glance” of VAM events at vsweb.org/VAM19.

This year’s meeting will feature a gala (see stories on p. 10) for the first time in more than a decade. The “Vascular Spectacular” on Friday, June 14, will benefit the SVS Foundation and its activities.

Also of note are:

Dedicated programming for vascular trainees and fellows to help them make the transition from training to practice, and to explore leadership development. Topics include billing and coding, contract negotiation, tips for a successful career and what vascular societies have to offer. Representatives of several associations and regional vascular societies will be on hand.

“The focus of the Fellows program is business, because we feel this is missing from residency programs. And it also isn’t covered by regional societies, which already include excellent fellows programming,” said Matthew Eagleton, MD. He chairs the Program Committee, which oversees VAM programming. “We’re also including industry representatives in the Fellows dinner, to focus on what’s in the pipeline in terms of industry, and what’s coming down the road.”

Programming for those involved in outpatient-based facilities, requested by members in the SVS’ newest membership section, the Section for Outpatient and Office Vascular Care. This includes a breakfast session co-sponsored with the Outpatient Endovascular and Interventional Society.

Two new programs for international participants, the Young Surgeon Competition and International Poster Competition, both on Wednesday.

Additional Ask the Expert sessions, which proved enormously popular in 2018. Topics for these small groups include infected grafts, IVC filter complications, open aorta, mesenteric/hybrid, open tibial exposures, Thoracic Outlet Syndrome and spine exposure.

Workshops moved from Wednesday to Thursday and Friday. Topics include transcarotid artery revascularization, fenestrated EVAR (ZFEN) and below-the-knee access and intervention.

An “Aortic Summit” Saturday afternoon, co-sponsored by SVS and The Society of Thoracic Surgeons.

“We are really focused on presenting a great program with content specific to many career needs,” Dr. Eagleton said. “We want to showcase the best abstracts representative of critical research, and we’re adding programming for targeted audiences. We have something for everyone.”

Register and book hotel rooms today. Visit vsweb.org/VAM19.

Tags
Vascular Specialist

Related Articles

Education and Representation at the Core of Inclusivity Efforts for DEI Committe

This article was published in the October issue of Vascular Specialist.

The Society for Vascular Surgery’s (SVS) Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee continues to make strides in advancing inclusivity within the organization, with several projects underway to address both ongoing challenges and new opportunities.

Why donate to the SVS PAC?

A few years ago, in his presidential address to the Midwestern Vascular Surgical Society, Mark Mattos, MD, spoke eloquently about the need to “protect our specialty.” A large part of this, he argued, is protecting our patients; no other specialty in medicine can provide the type of comprehensive vascular care that we offer. The daily reality we all face is the potential for declining Medicare reimbursement for our services.

Progress made during year like no other

While the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects dominated 2020–21 fiscal year—including the cancellation of the live 2020 Vascular Annual Meeting (VAM)—it did not deter progress on many important initiatives. “When covid hit, it intensified our focus on what was truly important: our members, their patients and the SVS as their Society,” said Executive Director Kenneth M. Slaw, PhD. “That focus was sustained the past 15 months and it has led to innovation and an unprecedented volume of member value programs.” He outlined important highlights from the fiscal year that ended March 31—just more than a year after the pandemic was declared—and the vital initiatives that continue to move forward.